Upajna Palepu, a Jackson School undergraduate with a minor in data science.
As artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping the world, one University of Washington (UW) student is digging deep into the ethical fault lines behind the tech.
Upajna Palepu, a 2025 recipient of the UW’s Mary Gates Research Scholarship and a Jackson School undergraduate, is using her $5,000 award to explore the complex ethical considerations surrounding the development of military AI. Her project, guided by Assistant Teaching Professor Jessica Beyer, focuses on the cooperation between Silicon Valley and the Department of Defense, examining how the tech industry navigates the ethically contentious nature of AI in defense.
Palepu’s research analyzes public-facing documents from tech companies to understand how they frame ethics in the development of AI. “As the pace of development has accelerated considerably in recent years, I’m interested in understanding how ethics are considered in the process of developing technology that is inherently ethically contentious,” she said.
And as AI continues to evolve, so do the laws and regulations that shape its use.
“The area of AI and cybersecurity law in general is incredibly fascinating to me because it’s so dynamic and will set new and impactful legal precedents that will govern how we interact with technologies that are becoming more ubiquitous in our everyday lives,” Palepu said.
The Mary Gates Research Scholarship has also provided Palepu — also a Cybersecurity Fellow at the Jackson School — valuable opportunities outside of the UW.
“The funding from this scholarship has allowed me to present my research at a political science conference, which was a great opportunity to build my presentation skills ahead of the UW Undergraduate Research Symposium and connect with peers and professionals in my field outside of UW,” she said.
Looking ahead, Palepu plans to attend law school to focus on technology policy.
“Whether that’s consulting on compliance for tech companies, analyzing legislation, or working for government or international organizations, I see this as a natural continuation of the journey I’ve begun as a researcher because of UW and the Mary Gates Scholarship,” Palepu said.
